Short Summary

SEVEN MILLION ALGERIANS WERE GOING TO THE POLLS TODAY (SUNDAY) IN A REFERENDUM TO DECIDE THE COUNTRY'S FUTURE POLITICAL STRUCTURE.

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SEVEN MILLION ALGERIANS WERE GOING TO THE POLLS TODAY (SUNDAY) IN A REFERENDUM TO DECIDE THE COUNTRY'S FUTURE POLITICAL STRUCTURE.THEY WILL SAY WHETHER THEY APPROVE ALGERIA'S FIRST CONSTITUTION TO MAKE THE COUNTRY A ONE-PARTY STATE AND A PRESIDENTIAL REPUBLIC.

IF THEIR ANSWER IS "YES", THE PROPOSED CONSTITUTION WILL BE PROMULGATED BY M.AHMED BEN BELLA, THE PRIME MINISTER, WHO IS THEN EXPECTED TO BECOME ALGERIA'S FIRST PRESIDENT IN ANOTHER REFERENDUM LATER THIS MONTH.

FILM SHOWS M.BEN BELLA IN BLIDA YESTERDAY, CALLING ON A BIG CROWD TO APPROVE THE CONSTITUTION.POLITICAL OBSERVERS PREDICT AN ALMOST UNANIMOUS "YES" TO THE CONSTITUTION, WHICH WOULD ESTABLISH THE ABSOLUTE SUPREMACY OF THE NATIONAL LIBERATION FRONT (F.L.N.), RECOGNISED AS THE ONLY PARTY IN ALGERIA.

THE CONSTITUTION HAS ALREADY BEN APPROVED BY TOP F.L.N.DELEGATES, BUT THERE WAS SOME DISCONTENT.M.FERHART ABBAS LAST MONTH RESIGNED AS SPEAKER OF THE NATIONAL ASSEMBLY, CLAIMING THAT THE CONSTITUTION COULD LEAD TO ALGERIA LIVING "UNDER TERROR".M.BELKACEN KRIM, FORMER VICE-PREMIER OF THE PROVISIONAL GOVERNMENT, IS REPORTED TO HAVE GONE TO SWITZERLAND TO LIVE, BECAUSE HE DISAPPROVED THE CONSTITUTION.

IN ALGIERS LAST NIGHT (TUESDAY) PRESIDENT AHMED BEN BELLA ANNOUNCED THE MOBILISATION OF ALL FORMER ALGERIAN LIBERATION ARMY SOLDIERS, AND SAID THE REINFORCEMENTS WERE ON THEIR WAY TO THE MOROCCAN BORDER.